Safety fruit clipper



March 30 1926.

G. w. SHORT SAFETY FRUIT CLIPPER Filed Dec. 11 1922 Y 1 fnuenir Gig d 0. 157(0)? Patented Mar. 30, 1926 UNITED STA E eurrronn w. silent, or ,IOMQNA, oanrronivrn.

SAFETY. FRUIT: oLIPPEn j Application'filed December 11, 1922. Serial 1%. 606,274.]

T all whom it mag concern:

Be it known that I, GUILFORD W. SHORT, a citizen of the United 'States, residing at Pomona, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented a new and useful Safety Fruit Clipper, of which the following is a specification;

This invention is adapted to use for picking various fruits but is more especially intended for the use of orange pickers.

There is a considerable loss of oranges by decay during storage and shipment; and it is estimated that with the fruit clippers heretofore and now generally in use from three to five per cent of the loss by decay of the oranges in storage and in the course of shipping, is directly caused by injury to the rind of the oranges'by the clippers used in clipping the stems.

It is very important that the stems clippedso close to the orange that they will In the operation of picking oranges the orange picker usually carries a bag and uses his left hand to take hold ofthe orange on the tree while he severs its stem with the clippers held by his right hand, and he then drops the severed fruit into the bag; and an object of this invention is to greatly facilitate the useof the clipper holding hand in reaching orange laden limbs and bringing them into position where the next orange can be grasped by the left hand as soon as the severed orange has been dropped into the bag, and to enable the orange picker to 1 simultaneouslyhandle the limbs, fruit and c-lipperswithout likelihood of dropping the clippers. I

An object of this invention isto provide a novel orange clipper which practically eliminates the likelihood ofdarnaging the 7 orange in the operation of properly clipping the same from its stem; and also to enable the orange picker to use his clipper-holding hand to handle the orange and the limb without any danger of dropping the clipper.

Another object of the invention is to make provision whereby the cut will be made clean through the bark of the stem from both 1 Fig-2 is aplan of thesclippers spread; I

the stemso as to avoid any sharp points.

sides of the 'stem'and practically even across p.

This invention involves" a novel-construe *tion of yieldinglyspread crossed memberspivoted together and is broadly new, basic and pioneer in a number'of features among .5 ."which f may be ment oned, a snubbed riboutting -]1.W COIIStIHCtIOII," a. U

reinforced I smooth faced elongated shank construction beyond which the snubbed rib-reinforced cutting jaws project in an abrupt rounded-g hump adapted to enter the stemdepression of the orange; triple handles, two of which are'upon the first of the crossed jaw members and the third upon the-second of said members; the first of such handles beingj adapted'to lieibetween the thumb and-the palm of the hand holding-the clippers, the second handle being adapted to project. from the first member in position to'extend between the thumb and the second metacarpal I l of such hand; and the third handle being adapted to be'heldand operated by the bent fingers of said hand. i

Another novel feature lies structionof two snubbed shearing jaws abruptly-rounded externally at their tips and sides so asto avoid likelihood of cutting or bruising the rind of'the fruit, the outer aw 1 in. the con being concave to receive the innerjaw and having a flattened inside facepwhile the inner jaw has an outer flattened portion to fit upon the'fiattenediinner portion of the outer jaw said flattened portions being edged:

and the outer jaw being bevelled inwardly to its cutting edge: s i p This construction facrlltates the cutt ng cutting edges.

peration and makes it easy'to sharpen the V Another feature is a recessed edge ontheouter jaw to hold the edge from slipping.

when pressed thereonto by the inner jawg'the cutting portion of the outer aw being thin-' ner than the cutting portion-of the inner jaw so that the main portion-of the cut will be effected by th'atportion ofthe clippers which is adapted to bemost readily sharpened.

Other objects, advantages and features of invention may appear from the acco1npanying drawing, the subjoined'detail descrip tion andthe appended claims.

too

The accompanying drawing i'llustrate's the invention, s Flguro 1 1s a view showlng theichppers. in position clipping thestem of an orange.

Woe

closed;

Fig. :3 is a itragn ental yiew of ;.,the clippers Fig. i is asaelevation orft he clippers shown in Figs. 1, Q'and 3.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged section on line indi-' rated at w a2 Fig, 2; the clippers being q-in thje position shown in Fig. 1, and the sight being toward the; clipper handles the direction of the arrow at 005. 1

ig 3.16 .is 'an'enlarged :section ot the clipper "ully spread inlazdeep st enrdepres'sion of :an orange ready for closing on the stem, the Y sight being toward 'E the ends of the jaws [indicated by the arrow at m Fig;v 2.

Tiis 'a sectionron line aaQfFig. 3, lool;

I .ingtewardthe tipdn the direction of the arrow -j 1' "S avvi'cw lookingat the tips of the aws and 1 toward ethe handle spread as In 9 1,8211 traginenta with the aws 1 View the clipper reversed fronrathe ;position shown in Fig. 4.

othe'r. I I 1 Eng; '11 is-a fragmentalunder side "161F011? tithe two .rrnenibers shown in Fig.

"F g. .12 isl'a fragm'ental outside edgeView o'f the tlower blade detached.

'Fig. 13 181521 iragmental outside :edge View -oi the upper blade detached.

I; Fig. 1 1 is a fragmenta'l view of ttheclippers. show ng the cutting endskof :the

snubbed a-ws from-the reverse. side of :Fig. 2.-

dFzi E is-a fra mental View of the reverse 'side-zot the clippersVas-shown in Fig.

The clippersare constructed. of two -;j-aw wca'rnyrng anembe a, Z) :crossed upon each other and :pifvoted:tcigcther'by :pivot 0; the

first :nieinberja isgprovided with two handles 1 d, -2,;and the second' niembenbis provided with a ithird-thandle,,s3. All thehandles die [0,; the ;hahdle 1 being adapted zto lie in the inaconinion plane on one "side of the :pivot palm of the pickers hand;ithefhandleLQ be- *ing. 1 adapted :to extend. outwardly between :the -'thumb :and the second nietacarpal of i such hand; and the third handle 3 being raclapted (to liezinside-of, and to be. operated by any of "thelfingersiof said hand.

Said members a, bare .rprovided on. the opposite side of the pivot c with smooth itaced elongated shanks 4, '5, respectively, dying in said lplane common to said handles,

-,and terminating" in snubbed cutting awe-6,

'7 which are OiiSBt fIOD'I; the plane of said :handles;and shanks, and are? normally 'held spread apartiby-ineans ota spring'fi seated in, soekets t9 inwthennembers on jthe handle sideot the pivot. V -Said nembers are "provided with stops 10 and which allow the edges 12 and :13 of :the aws"to-''spread :apart sufliciently :to re- "the stenrc'l Ottheorange, lemon-or otherifruittto hekpicke'd sbut whichjlimit. the

V spread'oi the offset snubbed cutting aws to allow sald jaws to be inserted into the stem depression ofthe fruit, to'grasp, the stem;

is semi-spheroidal and by reason of the oti' set beyond the sh'anln-eaeh terminates inaa.

semi-spheroidal fhuinp -or projection that form wot the jaws eirternally i will enter thesten depressionoftheiorange so as to clip the stem below the rim of ClEDL'QSSlOH, I

- Theouter snubbed jaw 6:1s concave lore .ceiveithe innen-j aw 7 and has a flattened iii-- side f-ace 15 to receive a flattened-outside face 16 of the inner jaw 7 rib reinforced, the ribs 17, 18Iservingxto .give'rigidity to the blades- The outer side ot the jaws project down ard, beyond the plane of the shank so that-the cuttingjaws 0f the clippers terminate in a rounded lm np, 1

@whioh is Oi1ZS1LfIO111 the shanks. 7 1 Particular attention .is d rected to the snubbed ends ot the clipper cutting aws;

such

Said aws are they being contracted and made blunt so roidal hump, the treeends of which rtermi ,nate at 'ZHQ pIZOXHHZLtGlY'thQ lowest point of ,zontal plane, asg'shown in Fig. 9.

I1 1JF.-igs.'5,-6 and I ;.cutti1 1g-edge- 12 01 the a w6 1S slightly above venting cutting the rind of the fruit."

l-clainizi Q V V :1. A pailot fruitclippersotthe cha liOtxtOCllt the orange beyond'thezstern, or: elsewhere, and terminate 111 a SQ-Hli-SPllQ- t will be seen that the said hump when the handles-are in a'horidescribed-havingjaws'thetree ends ot-whioh J are offset andterniinateuin asemi-spheroidal s-lnnnp flattened on-one side.

2. Admit-clipper having cu in an approximately semi spher0idal hump, the free ends of which awsfternnnatejapproximately .at thQilOWQSt point of said] tting awsgthe 1 outerends oit whichnre-o'liset and terminate hump; said cutting jaws having cutting edges adapted -to =cooperate witlreach other #andone-o'f which isadaptedtopverride the other, and one of saidjaws having n recess to prevent the fruitjgsteln from slipping when torced thereonto by tl.

other jaw. V V I 7 an testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at, Los Angeles, California, this 23d dayoit' November, "1922; v

GUILFORD wfsno'nr. j

1e edge :of the 

